Starkville, Mississippi

Starkville is a city in and the county seat of Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States. The Starkville Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Oktibbeha County. The population was 23,888 at the 2010 census.Starkville is an anchor of the Golden Triangle region of northeast Mississippi which consists of Starkville, Columbus, and West Point.The campus of Mississippi State University is partially located in Starkville. As of the fall of 2011, MSU has over 20,000 undergraduate students, more than 4,000 graduate students, and more than 1,300 staff.The university is the largest employer in Starkville. Students have created a ready audience for the Magnolia Film Festival. Held every February, it is the oldest film festival in the state. Other major events held in Starkville and strongly supported by the MSU Student Body are the Dudy Gras Parade, Cotton District Arts Festival, Super Bulldog Weekend, Old Main Music Festival, Ragtime and Jazz Music Festival, and Bulldog Bash.HistoryThe Starkville area has been inhabited for over 2100 years. Artifacts in the form of clay pot fragments and artwork dating from that time period have been found east of Starkville at the Herman Mound and Village site, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The village site can be accessed from the Indian Mound Campground. The earthwork mounds were made by early Native Americans of moundbuilder cultures as part of their religious and political cosmology.